Earth Hour 2026 Ferris wheel lighting at the Santa Monica Pier

Published on March 23, 2026

Pacific Park’s World-Famous Ferris wheel to ‘go dark’ for Earth Hour 2026, joining the world’s most iconic landmarks.

Earth Hour, one of the largest global grassroots movements for the environment, will virtually bring together millions of people, businesses and leaders from around the world to raise awareness on the urgent need to address nature loss and climate change.

The iconic Pacific Wheel Ferris wheel in Los Angeles will join global landmarks—including the Eiffel Tower in Paris, the Parthenon in Greece, the Great Wall of China, Big Ben and the Houses of Parliament in London, the Sydney Opera House in Australia, and Victoria Harbour in Hong Kong—by dimming their lights at 8:30 p.m. local time on March 28 for Earth Hour.

This special lighting event will take place on the evening of Saturday, March 28. The Ferris wheel lights can be seen from dusk until 11:35 PM each evening. Enjoy watching the light program online at pacpark.com/live.

WHAT:
Special Lighting of the Pacific Wheel for Earth Hour

WHEN:
Saturday, March 28
8:30 PM – 9:30 PM

WHERE:
Pacific Park on the Santa Monica Pier

On Saturday, March 28 at 8:30 p.m. local time, Earth Hour, one of the largest global environmental movements returns to create the “Biggest Hour for Earth” by calling on supporters across the globe to switch off their lights and give an hour for Earth, spending 60 minutes doing something – anything – positive for the planet.

Pacific Park on the Santa Monica Pier joins Earth Hour as the world-famous Pacific Wheel will “Go Dark” except for the wheel rim safety lighting, from 8:30-9:30 p.m. The Pacific Wheel is the world’s only solar-powered Ferris wheel. The Pacific Wheel Earth Hour event can also be viewed online at https://www.pacpark.com/live.

Earth Hour, organized by WWF, is a global grassroots movement uniting people to take action on environmental issues and protect the planet. Engaging a massive mainstream community, Earth Hour was famously started as a lights out event in Sydney, Australia in 2007. Since then, it has grown to engage millions of supporters globally, inspiring individuals and organizations worldwide to take action for the environment, and driving major legislative changes by harnessing the power of the crowd. As the movement grows, the one-hour lights out event continues to be the symbol of a broader commitment toward nature and our planet.

Since its beginnings, Earth Hour has been known for the “lights off” moment, with individuals from around the globe switching off their lights to show symbolic support for the planet and to raise awareness of the environmental issues affecting it. Earth Hour participants can visit earthhour.org to know what’s happening in locations around the world and read individuals’ stories about what they are doing for the planet.

Earth Hour continues to break records with over 3 million hours given for Earth in 2025. Supporters from over 118 countries and territories joined in to dedicate their hours for the planet. From hosting river cleanups to composing a symphony for nature, Earth Hour showed the world that collective action and responsibility could create real and lasting impact for our planet.

“At Pacific Park, sustainability isn’t just an initiative—it’s embedded in every aspect of the guest experience, from our solar-powered Ferris wheel to the community partnerships that drive our environmental programs,” said Jill Cherkas, Senior Marketing Manager at Pacific Park on the Santa Monica Pier. “Earth Hour is a meaningful moment for us to join a global community in taking action, raising awareness, and reinforcing our long-standing commitment to protecting the coastline and communities we serve.” Through its own ecological efforts, Pacific Park received the “Excellence in Stewardship of the Natural Environment” award at the 15th annual Sustainable Quality Awards presented by the City of Santa Monica, the Santa Monica Chamber of Commerce and the nonprofit Sustainable Works.

The nine-story tall Pacific Wheel Ferris wheel first debuted in May 1996 with the opening of Pacific Park and was adapted as the world’s first solar-powered Ferris wheel in November 1998.

Pacific Park also introduced the world’s first wind-powered amusement park game, the High Striker, in October 2011. All components of the High Striker were completely wind-powered including the chaser lights with more than 100 bulbs, multiple spotlights and sound system.

Soaring 130 feet above the Pacific Ocean, the Pacific Wheel’s 174,000 LED lights are mounted on the Ferris wheel’s structure including the 40 spokes and two hubs. The world’s only solar-powered Ferris wheel’s lighting system features 16.7 million color value combinations while the programming and display software presents imaging up to 24 frames per second to display dynamic, custom, computer-generated lighting entertainment. The eco-friendly, enhanced LED lighting provides 81 percent greater energy savings than most Ferris wheel’s traditional incandescent bulbs.

Pacific Park on the Santa Monica Pier, LA’s only admission free amusement park, offers 12 amusement rides, 14 midway games, Snackville with five fun food offerings and seaside retail shopping. Prices and operating hours are subject to change. For more information and operating hours, please call 310-260-8744, visit pacpark.com, and go to Facebook.com/pacificpark, Instagram.com/pacpark or X.com/pacpark.

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Feature image courtesy of @pacpark